Driving community spirit: Kathy McKay's impact on George Mason

Body

Kathleen (Kathy) McKay has deep ties to Fairfax, Virginia, herhometown. Her parents, James "Smilin' Jim" and Ruth Averill McKay, were pioneers in the Fairfax business community; her father opened Jim McKay Chevrolet in 1956, becoming one of the first car dealers in the area.

As student athlete at Woodson High School, she grew up near George Mason University's burgeoning Fairfax Campus. "I played field hockey, I played softball, and I was a swimmer," she said.

Much of that swim experience took place at a neighborhood club, where her own daughters still hold records from the 1990s. After graduating from James Madison University, she returned to Fairfax.

McKay is now the president of Jim McKay Chevrolet, a sponsor for many student activities and sports at George Mason, and Intercollegiate Athleticshas been at the heart of her personal connection with the university. Since the mid-1990s, she's been an avid Patriots fan, attending many men's and women's basketball games, including the ones out of town, often with her daughters and now her grandchildren.

"I've always been a sports person," McKay said. "I love college athletics; it's the excitement. This is something that the athletes really, really want to do, and so few make it [to this level]."

She also appreciates the role college sports playsin bringing a community together. "It's everything. No matter what your preference is, we offer every sport to allow a fan to be involved."

McKay's support extends far beyond the sidelines. She has been a generous donor to George Mason for nearly 20 years, serving as a member of the Patriot Club Advisory Board and inthe Green Coat Society, which recognizes generous, multi-year donors.

McKay with Mason basketball players on the K. McKay Court. Photo provided by Mason Athletics

In 2017, she made a leadership gift to the university's basketball fundraising campaign, resulting in the naming of the K. McKay Court at the Recreation Athletic Complex (RAC). Her philanthropy has included substantial gifts-in conjunction with the family-linked Richard W. Averill Foundation and Jim McKay Chevrolet-to a variety of George Mason's teams, including a pledge that touched all 22 sports teams during an annual Mason Vision Day.

She has also made gifts to the College of Visual and Performing Arts'scholarship benefit ARTS by George! and to the Green Machine ensembles.

"Kathy McKay embodies the spirit of George Mason and the Northern Virginia community," said Marvin Lewis, assistant vice president and director of Intercollegiate Athletics. "Her loyalty and generosity have touched every corner of our program-from cheering courtside to investing in opportunities that enrich the student-athlete experience. Kathy's passion, rooted in family and community, reflects the very best of what it means to be a Patriot, and we're incredibly fortunate to have her in our corner."

McKay carries on a family tradition of philanthropy and community service-George Mason's Jim McKay Natatorium in the Aquatic and Fitness Center on the Fairfax Campus, a regional resource that includes a 50-meter Olympic-sized competition pool, bears the name of her father. She is continuing that tradition and is encouraging a culture of connected philanthropy through her own children: her daughter, April, and son-in-law, Matt, are also active supporters of George Mason Athletics.

McKay has been there for some of basketball'sbiggest moments.

She remembers being warmly welcomed by the men's basketball team, including then-coach Jim Larrañaga and his wife, Liz, when she traveled with the team to the ESPN Events Invitational Thanksgiving tournament in Orlando, Florida, in 2007. She also attended Atlantic 10 Conference (A-10) Tournaments at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, including "during COVID, in March 2020, [when] we got sent home after winning our first game."

McKay was also in the front rows at the Robins Center in Richmond when the men's basketball team defeated the University of Richmond to claim the 2025 A-10 regular season title, the team's first. That same season saw Patriots Head Coach Tony Skinn, whom McKay had known since his undergraduate days, named A1-0 Coach of the Year.

"Tony was my pick from day one when we were searching for a coach," she said.

With a grandson in tow, McKay traveled in March 2025 with the women's basketball team to Richmond for the A-10 Women's Basketball Championship, where George Mason defeated St. Joseph's to claim the title for the first time.

McKay and President Washington. Photo provided by Mason Athletics

"I couldn't notgo, and they winthis thing-because I really thought they could," she said.

She also joined the women's team for the España 2025 cultural and athletic expedition, where the Patriots played international opponents in Madrid, Valencia, and Barcelona. With her on the trip was her eldest granddaughter, who has been attending games with McKay since she was six months old.

"Riley and I had a time together that neither one of us will ever forget!" shesaid.

She plans to enjoy as many games and team activities as she can fit on her calendar. "I love it!" shesaid. "I'm always looking at the schedule to see who's playing what."